Conejos County, Colorado
Conejos County is one of the 64 counties of the State of Colorado in the United States. The county population was 8,400 at U.S. Census 2000. in . Roughly half the area is on the nearly level floor of the valley, where the average elevation is about . The western half of the county ranges from gently rolling to steep foothills with mountains that rise in elevation to about . Conejos County is situated with the National Forest to the west and the Rio Grande River to the east, along Colorado's southern border with the state of New Mexico. Only about 34 percent of Conejos County is privately owned with the other 66 percent being National Forest, Bureau of Land Management (BLM) or State owned lands. Adjacent Counties *Rio Grande County - north *Alamosa County - northeast *Costilla County - east *Taos County - southeast *Rio Arriba County - south *Archuleta County - west Photographs of Sites Within Conejos County Photographs Various Points of Interest in Conejos County Climate In winter, the average temperature is 21.6 degrees Fahrenheit, and the average daily minimum temperature is 4 degrees. In summer, the average temperature is 61.4 degrees, and the average maximum temperature is 79.6 degrees. Seventy-one percent of the annual precipitation falls in the months of April through September. Average seasonal snowfall is 28 inches. The average relative humidity in mid-afternoon in spring is less than 35 percent; during the rest of the year, it is about 45 percent. The percentage of possible sunshine is 77 in the summer and 73 in the winter. Demographics As of the census² of 2000, there were 8,400 people, 2,980 households, and 2,211 families residing in the county. The population density was 3/km² (6/sq mi). There were 3,886 housing units at an average density of 1/km² (3/sq mi). The racial makeup of the county was 72.76% White, 0.21% Black or African American, 1.69% Native American, 0.15% Asian, 0.07% Pacific Islander, 21.50% from other races, and 3.61% from two or more races. 58.92% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. There were 2,980 households out of which 38.50% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.30% were married couples living together, 12.70% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.80% were non-families. 23.70% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.50% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.80 and the average family size was 3.33. In the county the population was spread out with 32.10% under the age of 18, 8.50% from 18 to 24, 23.60% from 25 to 44, 20.80% from 45 to 64, and 15.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 98.50 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.10 males. The median income for a household in the county was $24,744, and the median income for a family was $29,066. Males had a median income of $26,351 versus $20,200 for females. The per capita income for the county was $12,050. About 18.60% of families and 23.00% of the population were below the poverty line, including 28.20% of those under age 18 and 17.30% of those age 65 or over. Religious History The city of Conejos is the location of the oldest church in Colorado, called Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish. This church was constructed in 1856. The first settlers into the area were from New Mexico, primarily from Abiquiu, San Juan de los Caballeros y Santa Cruz. As more people arrived, mission churches were set up and all had the records housed with Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish. When the neighboring town of Antonito was built, the Theatines, priests from Spain came into the area and built St. Augustine church in 1880 within Antonito. The church records from Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish are now housed at the church offices of Saint Agustine. Conejos is approximately a mile northwest of Antonito. Presbyterians came into Conejos County in 1880 establishing churches in Antonito, Alamosa, Cenicero, Del Norte, Mogote, San Rafael, and Monte Vista. They also established schools in the area and had a large number of Hispanic converts. A jacal went up in 1854 in Guadalupe, now known as Conejos, which was the beginning of Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish. There is also a large Mormon population within Conejos County. These Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (LDS) settlers began settling in the towns of La Jara, Manassa and Sanford where each town also has an LDS church. Cities, Towns & Villages * Town of Antonito * Bear Creek * Bountiful * Cañon * Capulin * Carmel * Conejos * Elk Creek * Fox Creek * Guadalupe * Horca * La Florida * Town of La Jara * La Sauses * Las Mesitas * Lobatos * Town of Manassa * Mogote * Ortiz * Osier * Platoro * Richfield * Rincones * Town of Romeo * San Acacio * San Antonio * Town of Sanford * Sheep Creek National forests and wilderness *Rio Grande National Forest *San Juan National Forest *South San Juan Wilderness Historic trails and sites *Old Spanish National Historic Trail *Pike's Stockade, which is a National Historic Landmark Scenic trails and byways *Continental Divide National Scenic Trail *Los Caminos Antiguos Scenic and Historic Byway See also *Colorado census statistical areas *Colorado counties *Colorado municipalities External Links *Conejos County Government *San Luis Valley Dweller *Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad References Category:Counties of Colorado Category:Conejos County, Colorado Category:San Luis Valley of Colorado